Posted by Laurus Nobilis on June 14, 2009 under Human Resources | 
Change Management deals with the implementation of change within an organisation in a systematic and planned manner. The main objective of Change Management is to: reduce the probability of change implementation failure; reduce resistance to change; and obtain maximum benefit from the implementation.
To understand Change Management it is essential to understand the concept of change. “We must always change, renew, and rejuvenate ourselves; otherwise we harden,” said Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe. And change applies not only to individuals but to organizations as well. Change is inevitable and is imperative for the success of a firm. An organisation needs to change constantly, adapting to changing external circumstances, otherwise they risk becoming obsolete.
However, the introduction of changes is not a laughing matter. It is human psychology to resist change. There can be several reasons for resistance to change in an organisation: the uncertainty involved; inefficient communication of the changes needed; lack of courage; lack of the necessary skills; lack of communication of the purpose of the change; lack of support and motivation on the part of the management. This is one of the areas where Change Management plays a significant role.
According to Wikipedia, Change Management is “a structured approach to transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations from a current state to a desired future state.” Individual and organizational Change Management refers to the process of understanding and implementing changes at the level of singular staff members and groups of individuals respectively.
Individual Change Management and organizational Change Management are the two major aspects of the processes of Change Management. Experts have come up with several models for Change Management at both these levels. Lewin developed a 3-stage model for individual Change Management, called the Unfreeze-Change-Re-freeze model. In the first stage, Unfreezing, an attempt is made to ‘unfreeze’ or question existing beliefs, policies and procedures, and realizing the need for change. In the second stage, Change, the necessary changes are implemented. The third stage, Re-freezing, attempts to ‘re-freeze’ or create acceptance for the recently incorporated changes, to replace the old beliefs with new ones.
Hughes also uses a similar 3-stage approach in his model for individual Change Management. The 3 stages developed by him are Exit, Transit and Entry. According to Judson, the implementation of change includes 5 major steps: analysis of the existing situation and determining the changes to be made; providing information about the required changes; motivation and creating awareness and acceptance for the changes; actual implementation of the changes; evaluation of the changed situation, making modifications wherever necessary, and replacing the old system with the new one.
Similarly, the Change Management formula developed by Prosci, known as the ADKAR Model, also uses 5 steps. As per this model, the steps in Change Management are: Awareness of the necessity for change; creating Desire for the changes needed; sharing Knowledge on how the changes would be implemented; creating Ability for changes to be implemented; and Reinforcement for maintaining the changes in the long run.
Regarding organizational Change Management, the theory of Donald Schön is quite well known. He said organizations usually have the tendency of being closed to change, and do not accept change easily. However, if firms develop themselves as ‘learning organizations’ all staff would be constantly learning, changing and growing and thus change would be easier to implement.
In conclusion, Change Management benefits both businesses and individuals alike. The process takes time and effort but the results are beneficial for every one involved. Change Management is an on-going process and the effectiveness of the process can be increased when individual and organizational methods are used in conjunction with each other.
Sandra Goode wrote the Article ‘Change Management Enhances Business’ and recommends you visit http://www.afaprojects.com for more information on strategic change management training
Posted by Laurus Nobilis on under Human Resources |
There are four attitudes toward change, created by leaders, with which an organization can be managed. They run the gamut from maintaining control (Old Age management) to distributing control (New Age management). Four points can be designated to demark four attitudes about control.
1) Pummel. Terror. “Do what I say or you will die.” The bad old days. This time-honored method seeks control at any cost and can be used to force either change or non-change. The worker is a slave. The leader says, “My way or the highway”. It’s a very tense and stressful environment…and it’s created solely by the leader.
2) Push. Distress. “Do what you must do or the enterprise will die.” This is conventional motivation, the deliberate use of fear to galvanize positive action - the burning platform from which people must jump (change) or perish. Push uses force, like Pummel, but it is not brutal force. It encourages people to act by loading them up with negative information. In the hands of some, this is the big lie. The worker is a rat in a Skinner Box. The environment is just as tense and stressful as under Pummel, but the pressure is now not created by the boss, but by the information the boss is providing. Kind of like hitting people with bricks.
3) Pull. Eustress. “Do what you must do to achieve the future you dream of.” Imagination, inspiration. It is less control than a willingness to lead coupled with a willingness to follow. Pull is Push plus empowerment - workers motivate (scare) themselves. The manager is a human being with no power to coerce; the worker is a human being with free will. A kind of fear is involved. Urgency might be a better word for it. This is the hardest way to achieve change, but the way with the best long-term results. It combines both the tension of a perceived threat combined with an exit strategy…a way out of the stress. A step by step process towards a future positive state.
4) Pamper. Torpor. “Do what you feel like doing.” This is the realm of entitlement, the supposedly good new days. Pamper is Pull minus accountability. Zero fear, maximum empowerment, slack performance, scant measurement and evaluation. The worker is a child. The first two are related, characterized by fear, manipulation, and disrespect for the worker. The second two are also related, characterized by an acknowledgment of the worker’s humanity. The first and last categories are the extremes, but these extremes are common. Anyone who has been in many different organizations knows that a lot of them operate on these extremes of sadism and permissiveness.
The best hope organizations have for making successful change lies in utilizing a balanced combination of the middle, more temperate two - Push and Pull. Push to get people’s attention and start them thinking. It gets their attention, like the impact of a two by four to the forehead. Then it is combined with the Pull where people are rallied to follow the escape plan out of the pain. Pull to leverage people’s knowledge and creativity to put the change over.
A world class speaker, author, and educator, Dr. Robbins focuses on transformational leadership by providing leadership skill training, team building / team leadership training, management development training, and executive coaching. See more on http://www.harveyrobbins.com
Posted by Laurus Nobilis on March 30, 2009 under Human Resources |
Ten Top Tips to Save you Time and Stress
Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.
- H. Jackson Brown, Jr., writer
The Anti Time Management Approach to Time Management is not about neat tricks for organising your filing. It’s much bigger than that - if you want to be more effective in the way you use your time, then you’re probably going to have to shift some attitude. And that’s what this tip sheet is about.
1. The first thing you need to do is recognise and accept that there’s no such thing as time management. You can’t manage time - it just is. Since you began reading this tip sheet time has moved on and there has been nothing you can do about it. You have exactly as much time as everyone else. If the people mentioned in the quotation at the start don’t inspire you, think of your own names - maybe Beckham, maybe Ellen Macarthur. Their days are no longer or shorter than yours. Stop blaming time, stop wishing for more time - while you’re doing that all you’re doing is wasting time.
2. Next you need to identify the real source of the problem. And if it isn’t time, it can’t be time management. So it must be self-management. That’s right, the real source of your time management problem is not time, but you - or to be more specific, the way you manage your major resource in life: yourself. If you aren’t getting enough done or if you keep having to miss out on enjoyable things because you ‘don’t have time’ you need to recognise that nothing will change until you take responsibility for the way you organise yourself. Are you taking on too much, are you failing to plan or to prioritise? Check yourself out.
3. So you need to do an audit. Imagine you had a bank account that was credited with 0 at midnight every night. Twenty-four hours later any money left was removed from the account before it was re-loaded with another 0. Well that’s what you’ve got every day - 1440 minutes. Are you investing them well? Do an audit. Some of these minutes you’ll spend asleep; if the quality of your sleep is poor it will affect your concentration, energy and self-management through the day. Some of these minutes you’ll spend eating; if the quality of your nutrition is poor you’ll have energy highs and lows. How are you investing the rest of the day and what’s your return on investment?
4. Do you know what matters? That’s not a rhetorical question because I don’t know what matters to you. The important thing is that you know what matters to you. I once met someone who told me he was going to be a millionaire by the time he was 40; he was working all hours, but he was going to get there. Then he said, “I’ll miss the best years of my daughter growing up, but I’m sure she’ll be happy to have a millionaire daddy.” I wonder if he knew what really mattered to him? What matters to you, in life and at work? Do you know, are you really clear about it, at a level that gives you meaning? Once you know, use your time accordingly.
5. Some people say that to be good at time management you need to be assertive, you need to be able to say ‘no’. Well there’s a self-management step you need to take before you know what to be assertive about. You need to set your boundaries. I work with clients Monday to Friday, 9am to 9pm - but never at weekends. Weekends are just one of my personal boundaries. Do you know what your boundaries are?
6. Stop giving excuses. Start looking for solutions. Employers say things like “don’t bring me problems, bring me solutions”. Be your own ‘life employer’ and take this attitude with yourself. So your work means you have to be on duty at weekends, so the things that matter to you are different from what matters to other people - so work it out. Listen, if you are working what feels like 24/7 and you are not enjoying it and your health, relationships and life generally are suffering, what is that telling you? Oh, you get a big fat pay cheque - oh well, it’s your time, it’s your choice.
7. Multi-tasking is a sin. Sorry ladies, you may be better than us men at multi-tasking, but really, it’s not the best way to self-manage. It’s okay doing the ironing while watching TV and with routine tasks in the work environment that don’t demand much concentration. I know you won’t believe me, but research has been done showing that multi-tasking at work can cause stress, memory interference and … and you’ll take one and half times as long to do anything when you multi-task as when you just get on and do one thing. Ever noticed how it takes you longer to eat your breakfast when you’re watching TV or reading the paper, than if you just get on and eat?
8. Have you got a system? If not, get one. Look, I know some people think it’s anal to make lists, but if that’s a system that works for you just do it. If you don’t have a system you have confusion, the firing of darts in random directions. What’s that? You tried a system, but it didn’t work? So try another one. Remember we’re not talking about the impossible (time management), we’re talking about self-management and everyone’s different.
9. Are you putting number one first? No, not the first task on your list or your first priority. What we’re talking about here is you. Are you putting you first? If you think that’s selfish, get over it - because if you don’t look after yourself the time will come when you won’t be able to do your work or look after your family. Most people put work and family before themselves - but without self there is no work and family, or, at best, work and family suffer. Put your own needs first and work and family will benefit much more.
10. Go easy on yourself. So you’re not getting things done? So you’d like to spend more time on this or that, but you can’t afford to? Go easy on yourself. Just because things haven’t happened, has the world stopped? Can things be different tomorrow? Real time management is a frame of mind, not a time-frame.
11. “I thought you said ten top tips?” I know, but I managed myself so well that I had time to throw in another one. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading these ideas and that you like the ‘no messing’ style. I know some of you will still be yearning for some good old fashioned time management tips, so here’s one: of all the things you have to do today, decide on which is the most important, which one will make the most difference or bring you the most personal reward. And if you do nothing else today, do that one thing.
Craig Brown is a life coach who helps people to find something really important - themselves. He writes regularly for the LifeFirst newsletter, which also contains contributions from nutrition and exericise experts among others. To view Craig’s profile go to http://www.lifefirst.info/life_coaching.html and to sign up for the LifeFirst ezine go to http://www.lifefirst.info
Posted by Laurus Nobilis on March 28, 2009 under Human Resources |
If you know what Human Resources professionals want, you will have a better chance to be the next candidate called for an interview. Professional resume tips will definitely give you that much needed edge!
Professional resume tips #1 - Size really does matters
The length of your resume will be partially determined by how much working experience that you have, but length prevents your resume from standing out.
If you are new jobseeker or just do not have much experience in the field in which you are applying, Human Resources staff prefer to see just a one page resume. This is a brief way to sum up the qualities and work experience that you do have without wasting their time.
Of course, if you more experienced in the position for which you are applying, a two page resume may be more suitable. Of course, if you are just listing things to make the resume longer, you may not have the outcome you would like.
The bottom line is to be as brief as possible without ommitting something that the Human Resource people would like to know.
Professional resume tips #2 - Are the dates consistent
Many resume writers are worried about whether or not to alter the dates of their different jobs just to make a seamless chronology of their work history.
First of all, that is being dishonest. And you do not want to begin a new job with a lie that could be discovered.
Second of all, HR professionals prefer to see the gaps of your work history and how these breaks were filled by you. Perhaps you had a newborn baby or there was a family crisis that caused you to leave your career for a period of time. Whatever the reason, just be ready to explain the gaps.
Professional resume tips #3 - Discussing your previous positions
What you might need to do is describe positions that are related to the one that you are applying for. While you will still be asked how long you were in each position, showing the relevance is much more helpful to the HR people.
You must give your positions their correct titles or ones that express the same idea. Manager and Supervisor are frequently used interchangeably. For example, supervisor sounds slightly more professional.
As long as you are not fabricating titles, you are fine to smooth out their wording.
Professional resume tips #4 - What are your accomplishments
Hiring managers need to know what you have already done for your previous employers. You should have all the facts and figures that you could quote and discuss. Did you increase sales? Did you save the company money? Provide the HR person with things in black and white and you will see that you get better responses.
Discuss the positive things that you have done for your previous employers, and if there were any negative situations, find the positive side in them in case you are asked.
Professional resume tips #5 - Cover letter please.
Do you really need a cover letter? In many cases, hiring managers like to see something that demonstrates your individual personality. After several resumes, they will begin to look the same. This is not to say that you should begin with a something funny or send a photo of yourself, but you should use a cover letter to provide some indication of the kind of employee you are.
You want to show that you know what kinds of responsibilities is expected of you if hired and that you fully comprehend the goals of the company.
Show them that you really want this job and that you are more than ready for the challenge.
Professional resume tips #6 - 100% error free
Simple errors in grammar and spelling will hurt your chances of getting hired in any higher position. Take the extra time to have someone proof read your resume to make sure that you sound and look professional.
Just remember that hiring managers only have a limited time to read every resume that they receive. Get right to the point and your resume will get you the interview.
Andrew Chin is a recognized authority on the subject of employment and resumes. His website http://www.employmentexposed.com provides a wealth of information on Employment. All rights reserved. Articles may be reprinted as long as the content and links remains intact and unchanged.
Posted by Laurus Nobilis on under Human Resources |
The field of Human Behavior Organization emphasizes the importance of human resources in any business organization. The business filed offers too much focus on manpower development for it is the lifeblood of an existing industry.
This consideration provided several honchos in trade enterprise to create spin off departments to cater on different structural framework of human resource management development. Some of the most generic or common filed are the one below:
• Human Resources Careers
• Human Resources Certification
• Human Resources Consulting
• Human Resources Law
• Human Resources Management
• Human Resources Outsourcing
• Human Resources Program
• Human Resources Software
• Human Resources Studies
Human Resources Careers
The new millennium recognizes the importance of human resources personnel in their contribution to supplying the best manpower supply in a thriving industry.
Organizations in the business world rely on Human Resources management teams in overseeing business functions such as hiring, training, conducting interviews, relaying of company-related business trends and issues and employees’ benefits and the like.
Individuals who work inside this type of industry are tasked to making sure that the provided workforce are adept in their respective business roles and are able to function optimally under any condition.
This type of thinking is oriented among professionals whose function are those of above. They keep the company they are working with able to stay on top despite of existing competition against companies who competes with the same product or services a certain company is caters for.
Human Resources Certification
The field of Human Resources Industry evolved into creating a body of professionals or individual industries that take care of providing reliable certification activities whose purpose is to provide, attest and authenticate suitable capabilities among professionals in this field.
Human Resources Certification board’s certifying examinations are guided and are guided by core values and principles which an individual aspiring to be part of such industry should pass in order to gain the desired testament of ability.
Human Resources Management and Human Resources Consulting
Management and consulting groups take on the function of most of the above jobs typical of an HR staff member.
They work hiring the best professionals in the field as demanded by a corporate client. They make sure that these individuals are retained and that their continued career development is ensured.
Tailoring benefit plans is also one of Human Resources Consulting firms’ structured course of function. They regularly check medical health benefit plans that is beneficial for the company without sacrificing the overall quality of health premium option features given to employees.
This department is also in charge of regular relay of company policies to each employees and making sure that satisfactory conformation is met. It is also their task to remind erring employee of regulations that are intentionally or accidentally infracted and make the necessary adjustment as well.
Human Resources Outsourcing
Outsourcing job functions, or taking internal business functions to business industries via another firms or overseas proved to be more cost effective than having a single Human Resources team handle all job at hand.
The study conducted by The Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) provided conclusive evidence of how outsourcing human resources personnel and various HR functions could cut average company cost on HR spending and free them from other legal risk.
This type of initiative also gives core HR professionals the chance to focus on a more important HR functions and company goals.
Human Resources Program, Human Resources Studies and Human Resources Software
If Human Resources Management is the lifeblood of various Business Industries, Human Resources Programs on the other hand is the lifeblood of Human Resources Management.
HR is less capable of ensuring that its tasks and objectives are met without following a program at hand. Programs are effective when they bring results to the organization.
An independent HR Consulting industry study in Missouri explains how HR programs help professionals in this field in realigning HR policies to that of the company they are working for.
These programs are carried out to effectively implement job functions and seek on ways to improve them. Compensations, health benefits, relaying company regulations and management, staffing and culture change is communicated through designed programs.
Being an organization itself, Human Resources management and policies are directed by programs and these programs are expected to produce results, otherwise they are discarded.
Mary Murtha has BLS and M. Div degrees majoring in biblical studies and ethics. You can read More about Human Resources at: http://www.ezyhumanresources.com
